


After Party

by quaker_oats



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: M/M, Recreational Drug Use, Underage Drinking
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-15
Updated: 2020-09-15
Packaged: 2021-03-06 18:40:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,693
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26473543
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/quaker_oats/pseuds/quaker_oats
Summary: After the Shiratorizawa game, the team decides to hold one of their annual traditions: a party. Tanaka is hosting and they are pulling all the stops to celebrate their victory.
Relationships: Azumane Asahi/Nishinoya Yuu, Hinata Shouyou/Kageyama Tobio, Sawamura Daichi/Sugawara Koushi, Tsukishima Kei/Yamaguchi Tadashi
Comments: 4
Kudos: 122





	After Party

**Author's Note:**

> Sooooo just wanted to say up top that there is A Lot of underage smoking and drinking. 
> 
> It's just something fun my friend and I were brainstorming that I HAD to put together and it ended up being way longer than I expected! Enjoy!

I.

The first years loaded out of the bus and walked back to the gym with their shoulders heavy from not only the bags hanging off of them but also from the physical exertion of the day. They were rubbing their eyes and yawning from the tournament’s activities and though they were excited from their win that had led them to a bid to nationals, they were all looking forward to collapsing into their beds. 

That is, until Suga and Daichi had them alone in the club room. Everyone was packing their bags and double and triple checking to make sure they had anything. They were mostly quiet. The only sounds were footsteps, fabric rubbing against itself, and zippers closing bags. Even Hinata and Kageyama stopped their bickering for the day. The two third years peaked in through the door they had opened just a crack. They let themselves in with giant grins plastered on their faces. The four boys stopped what they were doing and stood to listen to the captain. 

“So,” Daichi started. “We wanted to ask you something.”

Tsukishima and Kageyama were relatively unphased. Tadashi’s head tilted slightly to the side. Hinata was, of course, the one with the most noticeable expression. His eyes widened and jaw dropped, still in shock that these two experienced players would ask him to do anything even though he was now also an essential cog in their team. Still, he kept quiet. 

“Well…” Daichi continued. “There’s this sort of… tradition that we usually have when the season ends. But since we’re not playing until spring-”

“Tradition?!” Hinata finally spoke up. He never really could help himself. His volume was always uncontrolled, but now in the safe and quiet atmosphere of the postgame club room, it made not only Tsukishima grimace, but Kageyama and Daichi as well. “What kind of tradition?”

“It’s a secret tradition,” Suga assured in a hushed tone with a smile and a finger to his mouth. “So be quiet about it, okay? Only the team can know about it.”

“Oh…” Hinata looked amazed and quickly shut his lips tight with a determined nod. 

Daichi’s hand rested on the back of his neck. “How do I say this… When the season ends we meet up at someone’s house and we throw a little party.”

Suga’s face was lit up as he added, “This year it’s going to be at Tanaka’s place. We wanted to tell you all beforehand because there’s going to be quite a bit of drinking and smoking. So we understand if you don’t want to come. No one on the team will judge you for it, of course.”

Daichi’s hands fell to his sides and he was sporting his own, albeit, smaller smile. “We’ll give you some time to decide-”

“I’m going!” Hinata announced, his booming voice once again making it feel as though the room was shaking. He whipped out his cell and frantically started calling his mother. 

“Uh…” Daichi thought of what to say as Suga laughed. “Well, we’re happy to have you.”

Daichi and Suga looked to the other first years who were all trying to appear cooler than they felt. All of them had taken out their phones as well. Tadashi was asking Tsukishima for a good lie. It was almost an exact rendering of their first year.

“All of you,” Suga concluded before leaving the club room with Daichi behind him.

II.

Tanaka’s room had been prepped for the occasion. LED lights were strung up where the walls met the ceiling and were slowly shifting from one color to the next. There was a pile of pillows and blankets up against a wall for them to use. Next to it was a stack of boxes and bottles containing assorted alcohol, courtesy of Saeko after their big victory. One box had already been opened and each member had a can in their hand. In some cases, it was their second can of the night, but others were still holding their first which was still mostly full. Hinata was trying to adjust to the taste as nonchalantly as possible but after taking his first sip it was not difficult to tell that he was unaccustomed to the dry sting that was left behind after every sip. 

The team had all gathered in a circle while Tanaka retrieved a drawstring bag that he had stashed under his bed. While the rest of the team was chatting casually, the first years remained uncharacteristically quiet. All of their eyes were glued to what Tanaka was doing. He pulled out a sealed jar from the bag. The smell hit them as soon as the jar was unsealed. 

“Oh, so that’s what it smells like,” Hinata remarked.

Eyes turned to him. The expressions from his upperclassmen were totally endeared. The same could not be said for the person right next to him.

“Hinata, you dumbass,” Kageyama said while elbowing his shorter teammate.

Hinata returned with a scowl, “What, like you knew.”

“As a matter of fact, I did.” Whether Kageyama was telling the truth was yet to be seen. 

“Quit fighting,” Tanaka butted in. He was in the process of pulling several plastic bags out from the inside of the jar. “It’s not a big deal.”

Tsukishima didn’t hide his smile when he glanced over at Hinata and Tadashi couldn’t either when he looked up at Tsuki. 

The first years quieted down and continued watching what Tanaka would pull out of his magic bag of tricks. The first bag was opened to reveal pre-rolled joints. The second, filled with strange green bunches to the uninitiated eye, was handed off to Nishinoya along with a water bottle. What the first years hadn’t noticed was that Noya had brought an extra bag of his own. He opened it and pulled out a sizable bong, a contraption that made Hinata’s jaw drop. Next was a small cylinder, which Noya opened and deposited some of the green nuggets into and closed. He twisted it between his hands, some kind of ritual that Hinata was intent on watching. When he was done, he opened it up and dumped the freshly ground bud out to pack into the bowl of the bong. 

While Noya was busy doing that, a lighter emerged from Tanaka’s bag.

“Alright, third years first.” Tanaka handed the lighter and a joint over to Daichi adding, “To our captain, for leading us to victory.”

Everyone had a chuckle at Tanaka’s distinguished tone and toast. Daichi held the joint between his lips and lit it. It was obviously not his first time. His inhale was smooth and audible. When he exhaled, the puff of smoke surrounded his face, making the smell all that much more noticeable. 

“Vice-captains next,” Suga insisted with his signature grin, that perfect mix of sweet and mischievous. Daichi handed it over and Suga took it enthusiastically. His inhale was deeper and longer than Daichi’s, almost like he was making it a competition. The smoke puffed out with Suga’s happy sigh, satisfied with his first hit. 

Asahi was next and the first years turned to him to see his performance like the other two third years. His meek expression when he received the joint was not one of humility, as the first years would soon learn. When he began his inhale, it was cut much shorter than Suga’s. He quickly pulled the joint away and coughed in a way that shook his whole body, making the smoke go everywhere. 

The room laughed jovially at the mishap. A smiling Suga patted Asahi on the back to try to help him expel the urge to cough. They let Asahi try again to get in a good first hit. His second go-around was much less dramatic than the first, but his drag seemed a little timid. That was more his speed. 

The second years possessed more experience than they had led on. Ennoshita was next in the circle followed by Kinoshita and Narita. Everyone seemed to be handling it fine. Better than Asahi, at least. Tanaka almost looked serene as he took his hit. Noya gladly took on the spirit of competition. His drag was so strong the group could see the ash creeping up as almost an indicator of how much Noya was taking. When he was done, his exhale was smooth and almost graceful. The proud smirk he was sporting earned him some laughs from his upperclassmen and looks of awe from the first years. 

“He’s so small, how does he take all of that in?” Daichi poked fun.

“Still more than you, big guy,” Noya poked back.

Daichi crossed his arms. “Respect your upperclassman or I’ll have you running laps.”

“Yes, sir,” Noya said in a mock serious tone as he tapped off the ash into a tray in the center and handed it over to Hinata.

Hinata took it greedily and was ready to put the thing in his mouth without knowing what to do. 

“Hold it!” Suga interrupted, making Hinata freeze with his mouth opened and joint halfway to its destination. “Do you know what you’re doing?”

Hinata closed his mouth and shook his head.

“How about the rest of you four?” Tanaka questioned, looking over the other first years. They shook their heads in tandem. “Cool. So what you’re gonna want to do is hold it between your lips and breathe in. It’s gonna suck the first couple times because you’re not used to it. Don’t push yourself too hard like Noya over here,” gesturing to the libero who was now once again preoccupied with preparing the bong. He looked up from his work and flashed a familiar smile that seemed to indicate victory. “It might be easier if you try to breathe in, hold your breath, breathe in a little more without the joint and then breathe out. You just wanna try to get it in your lungs instead of just in your mouth. And we’ve got water if you need some after.”

They nodded along with his speech. Hinata looked down at the joint still burning between his fingers. Now, instead of the first years watching them, the upperclassmen had their eyes glued to the first years. This was part of the fun, to see their newest teammates react.

Unsurprisingly, Hinata closed his eyes as he brought the joint to his lips. He sucked in a big breath of air which was immediately a mistake. His eyes popped open in a panic while his cheeks puffed up with a cough he was attempting to contain.

“Careful,” Daichi said, getting Hinata’s attention. “Take a breath in. Don’t forget to breathe.”

Hinata nodded and closed his eyes again. He took in another breath through his nose, engaging his diaphragm and making certain the smoke had reached his lungs. It was like he was running. After that, he allowed himself to cough. The rest of the group laughed and shouted encouraging words. Tanaka reached over to clap Hinata on the back and hand him a plastic water bottle which Hinata snatched up and ripped the cap off as quickly as possible. 

“It stings!” he shouted when he was done coughing and drinking. “In my throat.”

“Yeah, it’ll go away,” Noya assured. “Keep drinking water.”

Kageyama was next. His stare, like always, was pointed and concentrated. He looked confident to Hinata, but in his head he repeated the steps that Tanaka had given them a couple of times over. He took his own drag, which started small, like dipping his toe in the water. But he was making sure he was beating Hinata. His breath became stronger which forced him to stop. He didn’t let himself cough more than one quick one that let out a small puff of smoke. Though he didn’t let his distress show, the new sensation made him just a little dizzy which he wanted to get rid of as soon as possible. He quickly handed the joint off to Tadashi and grabbed his own bottle of water. 

Tadashi took the joint with shaky hands. He took a deep breath before going in for a drag, trying to ground himself. Doing new things in front of a crowd was never really his strong suit. Even Tsuki was looking now, which made his face even red. He had to remind himself that he had been in front of an even bigger crowd just earlier that day. In this room, it was his teammates. Despite the laughter they had pointed at each other, it was always supportive. And if he wanted to back out, there wouldn’t be any judgement. He was here, he was invited. This was his party too, and he was going to celebrate the day with something fun. So he took a drag from the joint. The burning in his throat had not been a joke and it was hard to get it down, but he did, coughing up the rest. And when his teammates laughed, he laughed along with them.

Tsukishima was the last in the circle. The smell hadn’t been new to him. He had an older brother already out of high school. Not much was really a surprise to him. And having the benefit of watching everyone else in the circle as well made him unintimidated by the little roll in his hand. The sensation shocked him, but he certainly didn’t let it show. His inhale and exhale were as smooth as ever. He passed it back to Daichi with the typical congratulations for his first hit, and when the attention was off of him, he slumped, just a little nauseous. He sipped from the water bottle Tadashi silently offered him. 

The joint took another pass around the circle while conversation started, casually going from one person to the next. It skipped over Hinata and Tadashi. Hinata was laying on his back and staring at the ceiling, already beginning to drift off. Tadashi was getting over the burning in this throat. All of their eyes were already rimmed red and pupils blown. 

The joint dwindled away and people were starting to move out of their circle formation to various parts of the room. Another joint was lit for some and Noya had finished prepping the bong for himself and anyone who wanted to try. The second years gathered around it along with Suga. 

“Don’t push yourselves, you probably shouldn’t have too much more,” Noya said after fighting for the attention of the first years who were beginning to escape far away into their own minds. “But if anyone wants to try, be my guest. It goes down smoother and you get a lot more in one.”

Tsukishima was surprisingly the first one to shuffle over and sit with the pack of upperclassmen, who greeted him with an excited cheer. He got the first hit. Noya carefully explained it to him, when to breathe in and take the bowl off, etc., just as Tanaka had earlier. Tsuki followed the instructions as best he could. He did everything as cool as possible and found that it really did go down smoother. He took a bigger hit than he or anyone else was expecting. As he exhaled, he coughed, but earned another cheer from his teammates who were impressed by his accidental performance. 

Tanaka pulled another plastic bag out of the backpack he had been hiding under his bed, this one much bigger than any that had been in the jar. He spread out assorted sweets onto a plate; brownies, cereal bars, cookies, gummies, everything. They also had a strange smell about them. 

“These take longer to work,” Tanak explained to the first years that had suddenly found themselves starving. “Don’t eat too many. Only eat one for now, if you want one. You don’t want to eat a bunch and have them all hit you at once.”

They each took one. After about 10 minutes, Hinata snuck another, thinking nothing of it. About an hour later, he was feeling the consequences. By then, all of the first years were feeling it. Hinata seemed to be on another planet entirely. He laid on the carpet, grateful for the soft fiber under his skin to ground him. Despite only barely knowing where he was in relation to everything else, he would not stop talking. 

“Wow,” he said. His arms and legs were spread out like he was making a carpet angel. “I can feel the music, you guys.”

Kageyama, who was only marginally better, still managed to roll his eyes like always. “You’ve said that three times already.”

“Don’t you feel it though?”

Kageyama was slouched up against the wall right next to Hinata. He closed his eyes, took a pause to breathe before responding with a short, “Yeah.”

III.

The third years had been to many of Tanaka and Noya’s gatherings. They had followed Tanaka out his window and onto his roof before to look at the stars. It really was different while their minds were hazy. So when they wanted to get away from the crowd for a little bit, they invited themselves out the window for some stargazing. Suga and Daichi joked while they guided Asahi out the window so he wouldn’t trip, but they all quietly settled laying down against shingles. Asahi finally got to have his talk under the stars. But in the moment, he was just too captivated with the sky and so satisfied with the situation that he couldn’t even start. 

From their perch, they could still hear the rest of the team inside. The playlist made specifically for this occasion was muffled by distance and the sounds of the summer’s last cicadas. It would be getting cold again soon. Hinata was babbling about a movie he had once seen, a sci-fi movie where there was no gravity on the spaceship and how that’s what he felt like in the moment. Tanaka and Noya’s laughter rang louder than the music. Kageyama was faintly heard calling Hinata a name, probably “moron,” to Hinata’s protests. 

Surprisingly, it was Suga who spoke up first.

“We did it.” 

They would go back in soon. They didn’t want to miss the whole party. Or maybe the rest of the crew would follow them out. Until then, that isolated moment when they were alone was perfect. They were what their first year selves had talked about in hopeful declarations, and they had done it together. They laughed and reminisced on old stories from their former years. 

When Noya peaked his head out the window and called them down they rolled their eyes. 

“You’re letting all the cold air in,” he said with an annoyed tone. Daichi joked quietly to Suga that it was actually because he missed Asahi. 

But as they laughed quietly amongst themselves their smiles lingered. They knew the crows were in good hands. 

IV.

Tsukishima had been even more quiet than usual. He was calm, completely and utterly serene. You would have to be paying attention to really notice how far gone he was. While Tadashi was much more obviously and visibly removed, he had been paying attention. 

Over the course of the party, they had somehow migrated with all the activity to end up sitting against the door. Towels were stuffed behind them into the crack of the door frame to keep the smell contained. It started with Tadashi’s shoe’s bumping into Tsuki’s ankles as their only point of contact as Tadashi sat at an angle to face the group. Time went by and unconsciously they moved closer until their pinky’s met in the middle of the space left between them. 

Suddenly, they were completely out of the conversation altogether, drifting in their own little bubble unable to process the rest of the group. Just looking down, picking at the thread of the other’s jeans, interlocking fingers, running over the lines of the other’s palm. 

V.

Hinata and Kageyama were feeling the full hit of their first high. Admittedly, Suga had been forced to step in to make sure they didn’t do too much their first time, but they were feeling the consequences of what they had done. 

Kageyama found that he felt heavier than normal, eyelids drooping and movement an effort. Tanaka had lent them pillows which he utilized propping himself up against the side of Tanaka’s bed. His movement was limited to him bringing food to his mouth and it seemed what was keeping him awake was eating it. 

Of course, what was really him keeping him awake was Hinata. Hinata was in what would initially appear to be in a similar state. Anyone who had spent even a small amount of time with Hinata knew his natural state was engaged and energetic. Comparatively, his shoulders were slumped and his only motion was the occasional unsteady sway. He wasn’t on the verge of sleep, though. He kept talking. Everything was funny to him and everything had to be shared. Even so, his speech was slower, his tongue having to catch up with his train of thought. 

Hinata didn’t notice when his body had decided it was done holding itself upright. He was too busy focused on the strip of light above him that was slowly shifting into a deep purple. When that moment did arrive, it took him a second to notice that his head had rested on Kageyama’s shoulder. After the initial shock of the realization, he found that he didn’t really care. He was much more interested in the story he was telling to the second years about one of the plays he had made earlier that day, half forgetting they were there with him when his tale took place. 

And Kageyama didn’t really care either. He was too far gone to put too much effort into scolding or tormenting Hinata and his juvenile enthusiasm and likability. In fact, it was nice to have this warm body just slightly pressed up against him with the window wide open letting in the cold night air. 

VI.

Tanaka had offered to lend everyone some clothes to sleep in, but people started nodding off before the favor could be fulfilled. 

The first to fall asleep was Kageyama. His back was still against the wall which had everyone still awake amazed that he could possibly knock out in that position. He had a nearly empty bottle in one hand and his other arm around Hinata. His head fell slightly sideways so his cheek rested in orange curls. Ironically, it was Hinata who was the last of the group to notice. Everyone had just been nodding along to another one of Hinata’s rants, looking above the first year’s eyes and smiling at the other who was, at this point of the early morning, dead asleep. 

Hinata only noticed when he was finishing a long winded run on sentence which ended with, “right, Kageyama?”

“Shh…” Suga replied with heavy eyelids and large pupils. He wasn’t really tired, more thoroughly buzzed. He was laying on his back looking up at the ceiling and watching the lights slowly blend into the next color. But he didn’t even look back up to reply. “He’s sleeping.”

Hinata looked up, though he could barely see from where he was. The consistent and deep rise and fall of Kageyama’s breath was evidence enough, but Hinata still moved just a bit to get a better look. Kageyama’s head fell limp and Hinata quickly went back to his former position, panicked that he would accidentally wake the other.

“What do I do?!” he tried to whisper. Though his whisper wasn’t really that, it was more of a raspy statement, but still quieter than he normally talked. 

Tanaka threw one of the spare pillows he had brought into the room into Hinata’s lap. “Just lay him down, dude.”

“Oh…” Hinata said, looking down at the blanket and trying to make a plan of attack. 

Nishinoya was perched across Asahi’s lap on the beanbag next to them. He stretched out to lean closer to the two of them. His head hung upside down which made him dizzy while the mixture of alcohol and bud made him giggly. The room was already spinning, even more so now that he was out of it, but his eyes still focused on the bottle in Kageyama’s hand. 

“Here, I’ll help you,” he said as he reached down and took the bottle. 

He immediately retreated to his upright position and leaned back into Asahi’s chest for stability. Despite the way his head spun, he brought the bottle to his lips and finished off the last of it with one large swig. 

“You’re disgusting,” Asahi said, though his demeaning words were accompanied by a laugh.

“What? It wasn’t like he was going to drink it,” Noya retorted after placing the bottle on the ground beside them. “You’re just wasteful.”

While those two quipped playfully back and forth, Hinata was operating more gently than ever before. It reminded him of when Natsu was just born and he was instructed with the utmost importance to be as careful as he could. He directed Kageyama’s body down the wall, stopping whenever the other would stir or mumble in his sleep out of fear that he’d woken him. He maneuvered with all the concentration he could muster throughout the whole process right up until he had finished sliding the pillow under his head. After he was done, he couldn’t help but study his work, just to make sure everything was alright, of course. He couldn’t help but stare for a moment. When Kageyama was awake, he rarely had these moments to just watch, take all of the King in without getting a sarcastic tone or a demand to focus back. Hinata’s eyes scanned over dark hair that wasn’t styled and just layed the way it grew, framing Kageyama’s face. Eyes fell down the line of the bridge of his nose, the curl of his lips. His expression was completely relaxed. To Hinata, that was amazing.

Watching Kageyama, Hinata realized how tired he was too. 

“Tanaka,” he called with his faux-whisper again. “Can I have one of those pillows too?”

Tanaka threw another pillow over, this time at Hinata’s face. Hinata was too out of it to care either way. He’d received plenty of spikes with his face anyway, a pillow was a dream. 

When he went to lay down, he realized where he was. In front of the whole team who at this point, weren’t really paying attention to him. They had turned to Tsukishima as Tanaka and Noya were particularly interested in how the usually cool middle blocker was doing. But it wasn’t just that. He was lying right next to Kageyama. He turned over on his side to look again. When he did, he noticed in the space he had left between the two that Kageyama’s hand was reaching out and sliding against the floor, obviously looking for something. Kageyama got his hand on Hinata’s shirt and pulled him in so the spiker’s head rested on his shoulder again. 

Hinata froze up before hearing a hitch in Kageyama’s breath. “Hey! Were you awake the whole time?” Now he was really whispering. There was no need to be loud when his face was so close to the other’s ear. 

“Of course, dumbass,” Kageyama retorted. 

Hinata took a moment to think. “No you weren’t.”

“Okay, but I was half awake.”

“Just go to sleep.” Hinata offered a half-hearted shove with his side, but ultimately melted into Kageyama’s.

Both of them fell asleep like that. 

Tsukishima and Yamaguchi were next to nod off. Like how they had gotten closer as more time had passed, Yamaguchi had also progressively started to slide down the door they were sitting against until finally he was laying down completely. Initially, his attention was just to rest his head. The dizzying effects of the substances were getting to him and his body was growing heavier. Which led to his eyelids growing heavier, which led to him dozing off while listening to the whispers of his teammates. 

Even with Yamaguchi laying and Tsuki still seated, Yamaguchi made sure to keep their hands laced together, which included his sleep. He rolled over on his side and unconsciously rested his head on their intertwined hands as a makeshift pillow. This stopped Tsukishima in his tracks. Under normal circumstances, he would keep his cool over anything else. But now, he couldn’t help but look down at Yamaguchi grabbing at his hand and pulling it close. His cheek was warm against the underside of his palm. Suddenly, Tsukishima couldn’t even pretend to care about anything else. 

Without letting go of Yamaguchi, he maneuvered so that he was laying down too. He took off his glasses with one hand and left them to the side. They were facing one another, curled up with their foreheads only a centimeter away from the other’s. Tsukishima wrapped them up in a shared blanket. Not long after, he couldn’t keep his eyes open to examine the blurry shape of the boy beside him and he too fell asleep. 

Ennoshita, Kinoshita, and Narita had grabbed pillows pretty early to lounge around when they talked. It didn’t take long for them to fall asleep in their own little corner. 

Next was Tanaka. Even though it was his room, he passed out on the floor, surrounded by empty and crushed up cans and next to an ashtray. He ended up holding the pillow he had been sitting up against close to his chest rather than under his head. Daichi haphazardly threw a blanket over him which earned him a groan from Tanaka but he settled sleepily back into his breath and was out cold, leaving his bed open. 

Suga, finally content with his time lying on the floor, pushed himself up and rested with his hands behind him to prop him up. He looked around the room, studying everything. His high was coming to an end, but he’d drank enough to still feel warm and floaty. And tired. Looking at his teammates scattered around the room drifting off reminded him of how heavy his eyelids had gotten and how nice it would be to snuggle under a blanket. His eyes, still flitting around the room, landed on Tanaka’s vacant bed. 

“Welcome back,” Daichi remarked to the now sitting Suga.

Suga smiled in return, still looking at the bed. “I’m tired,” he put simply. 

When he stood, he was still shaky, nearly falling over in the process. He caught himself on Daichi’s shoulder and even though his senses weren’t as astute as they usually were, Daichi reached out to steady him as well. A moment of silence followed while they looked at each other, making sure the other was okay. When they realized all was well, they couldn’t help but laugh. Asahi shushed them with an amused expression, gesturing to their sleeping teammates. 

Suga’s voice fell to a whisper, “Come on.”

He grabbed Daichi by the front of his shirt, trying to haul him over to the empty bed. Daichi gladly followed his partner’s boldness. His cheeks seemed even more flushed than they already were from the drinks. Instead of laying, it was more like they fell into the bed in a pile of each other. They pulled the blankets back and climbed underneath them. The night was cold, no one could blame them for huddling together. They fell asleep like that. 

The last ones left awake were Asahi and Noya. When they had settled on the bean bag a couple hours before, they stuck to their spot. After Asahi returned from the third years’ outing on the roof, Noya pinned him down in their seat so he wouldn’t leave his side again. And he didn’t. Noya shifted positions every once and awhile, but Asahi kept still. He was always a reliable shoulder to lean on, their Ace. 

In the early morning hours, even they were starting to lose their grip on consciousness. Noya had finally settled with his head resting against Asahi’s right shoulder and his hand clinging to his left. Their breathing even seemed to match up. It was quiet. They had the room to themselves. 

“You know, I’m gonna miss you next year,” Asahi said, breaking the silence.

Noya let out an indignant puff. “Why are you always so sappy?”

“It’s true.”

“Why bring it up now? It’s not over yet. We won, be happy,” Noya said with his eyes still closed.

Asahi was quiet for a second and Noya thought he’d gotten through to him. “I don’t want you to forget about me.”

That woke Noya up. His movements, which had been slow and sloppy, were now deft as he sat up to look Asahi in the eye. Brows furrowed, his head tilted to the side as if he didn’t understand what on earth Asahi meant. And he didn’t. “Why would you say something like that? How could I forget about you?”

“It’s not like that it’s just,” Asahi was struggling to find the right words. His eyes fell to his chest to avoid the grip of Noya’s stare. “I’m gonna be gone and we’re both gonna be busy and. I don’t know, I don’t want us to grow apart.”

When Asahi looked back up, Noya was still looking at him with that confused expression. And then, when it clicked, a smile broke out. 

“You think I would let that happen?” Noya asked, like Asahi had missed something major. “Oh, no, I’m not letting you get far away. I’ve got plans for us, so you better stick around. No running away like earlier.”

It was a tease, but it was real. He looked to Asahi, waiting for it to click for him. And then Asahi smiled back. They matched. When Noya was satisfied, he went right back to Asahi’s shoulder. 

They were quiet. They let the comfortable silence wrap around them until once again all they could really hear was each other breathing. They matched in that regard too, a happy accident. Both of them were too tired to talk. So they didn’t. They just drifted off into the quiet. 


End file.
